


Waking Up

by PerpetualDaydream



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Anxiety, F/M, Gender Neutral Pronouns, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Surgery, Wisdom Teeth, summary sounds kinda dark but it's pretty lighthearted
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-07
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-06-23 06:29:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15600360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PerpetualDaydream/pseuds/PerpetualDaydream
Summary: You'd think being the child of Tony Stark and working with the re-assembled team after the Accords drama would mean you'd be game to take on anything. But all of that suddenly goes out the window when you find out you have to get those pesky wisdom teeth removed and no one understands why you're so worried about the pain. After all, what's a little bit of a sore jaw for a Avenger-trainee who's been hit there multiple times?Thing is, it's not the surgery you're afraid of - it's the aftermath. But you know you can't tell that to any of your teammates.Well, maybe you can tell one of them. And maybe they can help you through it. But what happens when you wake up from the anesthesia and react in a manner no one anticipated?





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is a way for me to play around with some reader/character interactions for a much longer story I'm writing. The relationship dynamics in that fic won't be EXACTLY the same as in here but most will be along similar lines. I chose this topic because a few months ago I found out I'll have to have my wisdom teeth removed and my biggest fear in regards to the procedure isn't the typical worry about pain and I don't know what to do about it but I guess I'm hoping maybe writing this fic will comfort me. (Probably not, but maybe.)
> 
> Anyway, this takes place after Civil War and Homecoming but in this universe the Accords were eventually re-worked and the Avengers re-assembled with Bucky back from Wakanda to live with the group. The reader is in their early 20's and has lived with their father since around the same time the Avengers were first formed in 2012.

“Aw, come on, Peter. It’s going to be fine.”

You and the teenage spiderling were in the Avengers compound living room after breakfast one morning, waiting for your ride to the dentist. Peter was staying with the team of superheroes while his aunt was on a business trip to Japan for the summer, and since your dad was the one officially in charge of him he’d be taking you both to your appointments. You’d grown close to Peter over the past year since the infamous airport battle and had been enjoying having a surrogate brother of sorts for the past month, but right now he was really testing your patience.

“Can’t I just wait til I go back home next month?”

“The longer you wait, the more likely you are to get a cavity. That’ll make it a whole lot worse.”

“How would you know? You’ve never even had one!”

“True.” You couldn’t help but smile. As lame as it sounded you really did take pride in having a perfect dental record. “But you really need to come down. I don’t think my dad’s going to take it well if you’re still up there when he gets back.”

As if on cue, in walked the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist you just knew as “Dad”. “Ready to go?” he asked, and you nodded in response. “Great. Now where’s…” He looked up to see the teenager still petrified on the ceiling and sighed.

“Told you he wouldn’t be happy.”

Your father stretched out a hand as a cue for you to pipe down while still staring up at the boy. ”Peter…”

“Oh, uh, hi Mr. Stark…I…didn’t see you there?”

“Well, now you have. So come on down and we can head to your appointment.”

“Just be glad he doesn’t have his webslingers,” you muttered, giving your father another idea.

“Of course, I could call for backup.” he told the teenager. This was true. It had been quiet at the compound for awhile, but a few months prior your dad had made an agreement with the government to pardon the “rogue” superheroes who’d gone against the Sokovia Accords (which were currently being amended) and all of them save for Barton and Lang were now living with you again. Steve had even managed to work out a deal with the government (and Tony, who admittedly took a little more convincing) to allow Bucky to stay on house arrest at the compound while a thorough investigation was being conducted. So now the place was back to being a realm of chaos most of the time, but you wouldn’t have it any other way. On this particular morning, most of the Avengers who weren’t off on a mission were in the training facility. “Who should we call, Y/N? Rogers? Wilson? Maximoff?”

You’d only known each other for a few years, but it almost felt like you’d been living with Tony forever and had picked up on his tendency for half-jokes like this one. Sometimes you’d actually forget where you came from and felt guilty. You’d lived with your mother all your life believing you’d never know your other parent, until your mother’s untimely death when you were in high school. And as if that wasn’t enough for a 16-year-old to handle, the next thing you knew you were at the doorstep of your only other living relative.

You’d never met your father or even knew who he was, but suddenly you found yourself living with Iron Man and all the other Avengers. Your mom had never spoken well of the man she’d had a brief fling with back in the 90′s, but you’d grown to love your dad and had chosen to stay with your new family as an Avenger trainee when you got older.

“I don’t know…” you said, looking up at Peter again as you played along with your dad. “I wish Nat were here. If she weren’t on her mission with Rhodey she’d have him down and in the car in five seconds flat.”

Just as the two of you were about to call for help, Peter began shaking and lost his balance. After falling down to the ground he attempted to run away, but he slammed into the wall and before he knew what was happening your dad was holding him against it. “I’m serious, Peter. You need to stop messing around, and get in the car.”

Peter’s breathing became even more erratic, and you could see the tears threatening to fall. “I can’t.” He began sniffling. 

“Peter…”

“No.” The younger hero began to panic even more. “Mr. Stark I don’t…I don’t wanna go.” A few tears escaped. Tony sighed in frustration, but you could see his demeanour soften.

“Look, kid, I don’t want to do this either, but your Aunt May is counting on me to make sure you get your teeth cleaned. Lord knows we’ve both let her down too many times before, so we can’t let that happen this time, okay?”

The teen’s breathing had almost returned to normal, but he was still visibly hesitant. “You know what you have to do, Dad,” you said.

Both heroes looked over at you, and you smiled mischievously as you caught Peter’s eye. “I think you’re gonna have to beg him.”

Your dad rolled his eyes at this and looked back and forth between the two of you a couple times. “Really?” he mouthed. You nodded with a smirk. He looked back at Peter, who raised his eyebrow.

“Alright, fine.” Tony took a deep breath in. “Will you go to the dentist, Peter?” He put on his best puppy dog eyes. “Please?”

The sight made you laugh out loud, and despite his still-present anxiety, the spider-boy couldn’t help but smile a little. He nodded ever so slightly, which was enough for Tony to step back from the wall as you took the kid’s hand and led him out to the car.

“It won’t be that bad,” you reassured him. “You’ll see.”

***

“You were right, Y/N! It really wasn’t so bad!” Peter said cheerfully as he stepped out of the dentist’s office. “Well, not today, at least. The dentist I’ve been seeing in Queens is pretty creepy. There’s all these paintings of cats with huge eyes and…” The arachnid-hybrid of a teen continued to go on like this for the entire ride home, gushing from the backseat about the compliments the dentist had given him on his teeth and how cool the glow-in-the-dark toothbrush they had given him was.

Once you got home, Peter cheerfully hopped out of the car and headed inside. You trudged in behind him followed by Tony, who handed you a piece of paper, which you promptly crumpled and threw on the floor behind you.

Peter was right. It really hadn’t been so bad…for him. But in your case, fate had been a cruel mistress today, not to mention an ironic one.

Your surrogate brother was completely oblivious of this, now showing off his new toothbrush to Sam and Wanda in the living room. Your dad picked up the discarded paper and spoke. “You know, throwing away the diagnosis isn’t going to change the fact that wisdom teeth need to be extracted.”

“I already told you, I’m not going.” You’d already had this discussion in the dental office, but neither of you had budged on the matter.

“Come on, Y/N. What happened to the dentist being ‘no big deal’?”

“A routine cleaning isn’t a big deal. We’re talking about having teeth ripped out of my skull! I think there’s a fine line between those two things, don’t you?”

“Having your wisdom teeth out  _is_  pretty much a routine procedure; almost everyone has to get it done. You know I did, and so did your mother. With those genetics, is this really a surprise to you this day would come?”

“No, which is why I had a plan in place for when it did.”

“Oh, and what was that, exactly?”

“Bruce. He promised me if I ever need any teeth pulled, he’d do it.” This was true. When you’d first arrived at the Avengers base you couldn’t even stay still for a simple needle in the arm, but thanks to Dr. Banner you could handle most medical procedures with relative ease. But you’d still never had any teeth extracted, or any surgical procedure at all, actually.

Tony sighed. “In case you haven’t noticed, Banner’s kind of wrapped up in something else at the moment.” You both grew quiet for a minute, remembering how the last time you’d seen the scientist two years prior, the Hulk had taken over and disappeared.

“We’ll just wait til he gets back then!” Your voice was growing louder and more desperate.

“Y/N, the dentist said your teeth are impacted and need to come out as soon as possible. Who knows when we’ll see Banner again?”

“But -”

“Y/N,” Tony’s voice was stern now, and he shoved the crumpled up paper back into your hand. “You’re getting this procedure done. End of story.”

You almost responded, but realized you were on the verge of tears and wouldn’t be able to say anything else without having a huge breakdown. You turned to walk away, only to see the living room was now filled with all the Avengers currently at the compound - Peter, Sam, Wanda, Vision, Clint, Steve, and Bucky. And every last one of them was staring at you.

_Shit._

“Hey,” Sam said from one of the couches. “Getting teeth pulled isn’t so bad. It’s just a jab in the arm, a couple in the mouth, and bam! Next thing you know you’re all ready to join Chip-n-Dale’s Rescue Rangers.” He sucked air into his cheeks in an attempt to make them look like a chipmunks, to the amusement of Peter and Clint.

“Don’t forget the absolute nonsense that you'll be spewing afterwards,” Clint pulled out his phone. “Check this out. Everyone else in the room crowded around him and began laughing. You tentatively walked over to see the David After Dentist video playing and felt tears well up in your eyes again.

Your dad noticed this and took a few steps towards you, gently taking hold of your wrists. “Look, Y/N, the hard part’s over.” His voice was much softer now than it had been a few minutes prior. “You’ve already gotten the X-Rays and consultation done. Now all you have to do is take a quick nap when you go back tomorrow and -”

“ _Tomorrow?_ ”

Everyone looked up from whatever video Clint was playing now as Tony tok another deep breath. “Yes, the oral surgeon had an opening first thing in the morning, so I snapped it up for you.”

“But-but that’s too soon!” you sputtered. “Can’t we wait another month or so when Peter is back home and things are a little more normal around here?”

“Y/N, we both know things are never ‘normal’ around here.”

“You know what I mean! I don’t have time to prepare! You just sprung this on me! I need time to process this news and-”

“Y/N. For the sake of everyone in this household, most notably, my own,” He said the second part under his breath. “we’re going to get this over with now.”

“But-”

“You are getting your wisdom teeth out tomorrow and that’s final!”

Despite wanting to protest more but you knew the tears were about to turn into a waterfall so you started briskly walking to your room without another look at anyone. “You’ll thank me later!” your dad called after you.

“Sucks to be you right now.” Clint snickered.

“You won’t be laughing when it’s  _your_ kids’ turn in a few years.”

That was the last thing you heard before locking your door, leaping onto your bed, and sobbing into your pillow.

***

“Hours later, when everyone had turned in for the night, you paced around your room, desperately trying to think of a way out of this. Your window caught your eye, making you briefly consider running away for a few days, but you quickly shot that down. Your go-to getaway spot when you needed a break from the chaos of the compound was Peter’s place, but no one was there right now.

Maybe you could fake a mission call for the entire team? No, nine hours wasn’t nearly enough time to put such an elaborate plan into place on your own. You mentally cursed yourself for not winning the argument to push your procedure back.

You mind wandered back to the rest of the team watching that video. How could they laugh at that? The people in those clips seemed to have totally forgotten themselves. Then you remembered most of your housemates had been through way worse. These were people who had fought in wars, who had been experimented on by secret organizations. Heck, your own father had to have a chest implant for a few years just to stay out of cardiac arrest. You suddenly felt ashamed of how dramatic you were being over the whole ordeal, but unfortunately, that didn’t take any of the fear away, only adding a side helping of guilt to it.

Your eyes wandered over to your workspace. You really needed to clean your room. Old project notes and piled up upon the desk, and next to them were a couple of old yogurt cups and Chinese food containers.

Your stomach growled upon seeing them. You had been too worked up to eat any supper after your appointment, but now you felt like you could eat a horse. Too bad the instruction sheet (which you had briefly looked over to learn the details of your oncoming torture) had firmly forbidden you from eating anything after midnight or else you wouldn’t be able to have the surg- _wait a minute_ …

You looked at the digital clock sitting on your beside table.  _12:04 am_.

Perfect.

You quietly opened your bedroom door, scanning every nook and cranny you could see for any movement. When you were confident no one was close enough to spot you before you had the chance to hide, you tiptoed down the hall, through the living room, and into the kitchen.

Just as you were reaching to open the fridge, you felt an arm around you, lifting you off the ground. Before you could scream, something cold and hard was suddenly right over your mouth, clamping it shut.

“Sorry, sweetheart. Not tonight.”

You tried to protest, but it was hopeless with Bucky’s flesh arm still tightly wrapped around you and metal hand remaining pressed against your mouth. When you had calmed your efforts, he put you back down on the floor. Seeing that he was now completely blocking the refrigerator, you began heading over towards one of the cabinets, but Bucky quickly nixed that plan by stretching both his arms out to reach the island counter-top, effectively trapping you in place.

The two of you stood in silence for a moment, Bucky clearly not planning to budge from his current position while you stared at him expectantly, though not for anything specific.

After a minute or two, you broke the silence. “Can you just get the ‘doctor’s orders' lecture out of the way so we can both go back to bed?”

Bucky laughed. “I know it’s pretty dark in here, but do I really look that much like Steve to you?”

For the first time in nearly 24 hours, you felt yourself crack a smile.

“You should be glad it’s me in here and not him,” he continued. “Or worse, your old man. He had an alarm set up after you went to bed to have F.R.I.D.A.Y. give him a heads up if you opened the fridge or any of the cupboard doors. I caught you just in time.”

You felt foolish for not having thought of that possibility. Your dad was always taking precautions, after all. You figured your shame must have shown on your face because the next thing you knew Bucky had his arm wrapped around your shoulder. “It’s okay, kid. Whaddya say we go back to bed?” He kept his arm around you as he began guiding you back to your room.

The two of you sleeping together (only in a literal sense) in your room was nothing new. Back when the government had agreed to pardon the fugitives in regards to the Sokovia Accords conflict, neither you nor Tony had been particularly keen on the idea of of the man who killed your grandparents being ordered to stay on Avengers compound property for the time being, even with Steve’s constant assurance the Wakandan scientists had managed to eradicate his HYDRA programming. For the first few weeks of the new living arrangement, you rarely spoke to the mysterious super-solider and avoided being in his presence whenever possible.

But then you started to run into him when grabbing some water or tea in the middle of the night. Your reaction the first few times was pure terror, but after awhile you slowly grew used to Bucky’s nighttime presence, coming to expect and even appreciate it. You started offering him some of your tea, which led to conversations, which led to you realizing his sleep patterns were completely shot and had been for quite some time.

From your conversations you’d managed to gather he had frequent nightmares, so you offered to spend the night with him as a sort of experiment. Bucky was hesitant to impose, but once you’d convinced him it ended up being the best night’s sleep he ever had (and one of your better ones as well).

Since then, you’d both become quite comfortable with the arrangement of Bucky showing up at your door in the middle of the night whenever he’d had a nightmare or was feeling particularly haunted by his past in some other way and him waking up and sneaking out early the next morning. In fact, you’d love for him to stay with you every night, but you knew your secret sleeping arrangement had to be sporadic, reserved for only the most stressful times so it would be less likely for the others to catch on. You definitely didn’t want your dad finding out and you knew most of the other Avengers couldn’t exactly keep a secret like that. As such, these special “meetings” only happened once or twice a week.

But tonight was different than normal. While it wasn’t totally unusual for the two of you to meet in the kitchen or hallway on a night when Bucky was stressed but not wanting to impose for one reason or another (in those instances, you’d always drag him back to your room anyway) this was a total role reversal. Up until tonight, it was always you taking care of Bucky; you were the one encouraging him to talk to you, helping him work through his issues, providing comfort for him. Of course, the conversation would often stray and you’d end up talking about your own life and experiences which could also be helpful to you in a way, but this was the first time you were the one experiencing the initial distress with him taking control of the situation.

It felt strange, yet comforting, for Bucky to be the one to make sure you were settled into the bed before climbing in on your left side, gently stroking your back with his right arm. After a few minutes he spoke. “Can I ask you something?”

“You just did,” you tried to lighten the mood a bit, moreso for your sake than his, though you did hear a gentle chuckle before he continued.

“I don’t wanna sound…judgmental or anything; I’m just curious is all. But…you’ve had more than a few bumps and bruises in your day. I mean, you’ve fallen from the top of the tower while testing some of your old man’s fighting suits. You’ve helped Peter fight thugs in back alleys and taken quite a beating from them. You’ve sparred with  _Romanoff_  for crying out loud, and she’s certainly not one to hold back, even in training…I guess what I’m trying to say is…if you could take all that and shake it off like it was nothing…what’s a little bit of a swollen mouth to ya, huh?”

You sighed internally. He didn’t get it either. You didn’t know how to respond. Of course, you were very grateful to Bucky for caring about you so much. And he was right, a little inconvenient soreness in the jaw didn’t really bother you, especially after some of the things you’d faced as an Avenger-in-training. But it was frustrating that no one understood why you were so scared of undergoing the procedure. And you couldn’t talk about it because pretty much everyone else at the compound,  _especially_  Bucky, had faced straight-up unspeakable horrors. 

Feeling embarrassed and ashamed all over again, you felt yourself start to tear up again and rolled over to face away from Bucky, but it was clear he wasn’t having that. “Hey, don’t worry about it,” your bedmate said as he wrapped both his arms around you, the two of you assuming a sort of spooning position. “Answering, I mean. I’m not telling you not to be scared since I shouldn’t be telling you how to feel. Does that make sense?”

His rambling was so adorable you couldn’t help but let out a laugh and relax into his embrace, which made him smile. “Yes. But come on, you know I really shouldn’t be scared of this. It’s really nothing…not compared to what everyone else in this household has experienced,” your voice lowered to a level barely above a whisper. “Especially you.”

That did it. The tears started to fall down your face. You buried your head in a pillow in hopes of muffling your sobs but Bucky wasn’t having it. “Look at me, Y/N.” You didn’t oblige. “Y/N,” he repeated, to no avail. He turned you back over and held you in place, forcing you to face him while rubbing your back soothingly. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. But just know you don’t have to pretend not to be afraid of something because of what I or anyone else in this place went through. You got that, doll?”

“I guess.” You still felt ashamed.

He pulled you back into his arms in the spooning position you had assumed earlier. “And if you  _do_ want to talk about anything, I’m all ears.”

You didn’t respond right away, simply electing to continue attempting to relax in his arms. It would probably be relieving to talk to someone about what you were feeling, and Bucky would actually probably be able to relate to the subject. The trouble was, you were so embarrassed even bringing it up since the rational side of your brain knew your worst case scenario would probably be a picnic compared to his experience with this particular problem.

But eventually, your irrational side crept out to take the supersoldier up on his offer. “Can I ask you a question?”

“You just did,” Bucky smiled at the role-reversal from the exchange from a little while ago.

“Do you remember anything from when you were out of control? You know, when you were…not yourself,” you approached the topic of his time with HYDRA carefully.

Bucky was puzzled by this question, but after pausing for a moment he went with it. “You mean like, the… _things_ they had me do?” He was obviously referencing the dozens of horrible missions he’d been sent out on. You could hear a hint of trauma creeping into his voice and felt terrible for even bringing it up.

“No!” You quickly tried to help him wave those memories away. That’s not it, exactly. More like if you ever felt like you didn’t know where you were, who you were. Like…foggy.”

“Ohhhh. Yeah, kind of. Usually after waking up from cryo I’d feel pretty disoriented. Is that what you meant?”

“Yeah, like that.”

“I mean it’s all kinda fuzzy now but I remember sometimes it took me awhile to recognize people which was pretty scary. Sometimes I’d think they were the enemy and try to attack them.” He chuckled. “Thinking back now it was probably my subconscious trying to save-”

Bucky cut himself off mid-sentence when he realized you’d started crying again. He apologized repeatedly as he wiped your tears away, but more and more kept replacing them.

“I don’t want to feel lost.” You sobbed. “I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“Why would you, doll? HYDRA’s long gone now. They’re not gonna get you.”

“Not HYDRA. When I wake up.” Your sobs and difficulty breathing meant you were having trouble getting the words out. “Tomorrow.”

“I’m still not quite following, doll.”

You thought back to the videos everyone had been watching that afternoon and the meltdown got even worse. “People freaking out because they don’t know where they are, or yelling about nothing. That was you after cryo. And it’s gonna be me tomorrow after I get my teeth out.”

You broke down again, leading Bucky to pull you closer to him once again. “Oh doll,” he said as he began stroking your head as you continued to sob and shake in his arms. He continued to soothe you for a few minutes until you calmed down enough to return to the conversation. “It’s not gonna be anything like that tomorrow.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Being frozen isn’t the same as going under anaesthesia, Y/N. You’re only gonna be asleep for an hour, not a decade. And you’re not gonna wake up and start throwing punches. Even if you did you wouldn’t do any damage being high and all.” He smiled.

“But what about the other stuff? I might forget everyone, or have weird visions. Sometimes people spill their guts out, or burst into tears when someone touches them. Some even forget their own families.”

“Aw no,” Bucky felt terrible he made you cry again. “I’m sorry, Y/N. Just look at me for a sec, okay?” You hesitated at first, but soon obliged. “You don’t have to worry about all that, Y/N. Even if you did any of that stuff it’d go away real fast, in like an hour or two, probably. And everyone would know it was just a side effect.”

That didn’t make you feel better. You weren’t scared people would take you seriously, you were scared they  _wouldn’t_  take you seriously. “Plenty of time for my dad to whip out his phone and capture my humiliation on camera,” you groaned. “I’ve seen the videos, Bucky.”

“Oh yeah, like the one Sam was showing me earlier of the girl who didn’t recognize her own mom.” He laughed a little bit, but that only set you off again.

“See? Everyone always laughs at the person, but I just think of how frustrated or scared they must feel. It’s like one of those nightmares where you try to talk but nothing comes out of your mouth, or something  _does_  come out but it’s gibberish. These people wake up traumatized, and everyone acts like it’s some big joke.” The tears had become even more frequent now that you were both scared  _and_ embarrassed now that he knew how dumb your big fear about the procedure was.

Bucky sighed, knowing he has messed up. “I’m sorry, doll.” He continued to rub your head and back softly. After about five minutes he spoke again. “You know not  _everyone_  does all that weird stuff, right? I didn’t. At least, I don’t think I did.”

You had nearly fallen asleep but now you were wide awake again. “What? Didn’t you just claim to have attempted to attack people after coming out of cryo?”

“I’m not talking about cryo, doll. I’m talking about going under the knife.”

“What? When did you ever…?”

“Did Steve ever tell you about the rescue mission when my unit got lost during the war?”

“You mean when everyone thought you were dead but he didn’t and then found you asleep on a table?”

“Yeah that. They’d actually knocked me out. For some kinda…surgery. Of the experimental variety.” You could infer what he was referring to and didn’t pry for details, but did open your mouth to ask something. “Yes, Y/N, we did have anesthesia in the 40′s.” You had to laugh a little at him reading your mind. “I suppose I was lucky they were were ‘considerate’ enough to give it to me, but they probably just didn’t want me trying to make a break for it.”

You were both laughing now. “So, what happened when you woke up?” you asked.

“Well I was confused and it was pretty dark in there, which I guess you could say upped the scare factor quite a bit.” Your heartbeat got faster again picturing this and then thinking about what awaited you in the morning. “But then I saw Steve was there, and I had this feeling everything would be okay.” He smiled, and you were comforted a little bit. “Even if he looked a little different.”

“What?” You were back in panic mode in an instant. “You got the weird visions?” 

“No,”  Bucky laughed as he put his flesh arm around your shoulders. “It was the serum. I hadn’t seen him since he’d gotten it and it was a bit of a shock to say the least.”

“Ohhhh,” you relaxed into his embrace again. You really needed to stay that way for awhile.

“Then we had to head out before we got caught, and I woke up pretty quickly.”

“So I might not even have a strange reaction to the stuff?”

“You never know. But that story gave me a couple ideas.”

“About what?”

“You’ll see. But right now you to get some sleep so you’re not out of it before you even get to the office tomorrow.”

You started to laugh but it turned into a yawn, proving his point. You knew Bucky was right and if you didn’t get some rest now while you were calm, you’d find another reason to be anxious and might not get another window of opportunity before morning. So you closed your eyes as Bucky’s arm tightened around your body, the sound of his breathing like ocean waves gently pulling you into the sea of slumber and helping you drift you off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm guessing this will end up being 2-3 chapters; it just depends on how I choose to split the story up.
> 
> Please comment and stuff so I feel validated and not like I'm putting this out into the void for no one to see. I have no plans to share this on my regular social media since I don't really want those followers to know what I write so if you somehow come across this please let me know!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N still isn't too sure about this whole oral surgery thing, so how will the others get them in the chair?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is more of a bridge between the first and last ones than anything else, but I hope you enjoy anyway. :)

You woke up the next morning to a knock on your door. You checked to make sure Bucky had already left your room, and were relieved but also slightly disappointed to discover he had. Waking up without him was typical, since your nighttime visits were a secret and all, but you wished you could experience waking up in his arms for once. Especially on mornings like this, when you’d realize what the day would bring and immediately feel your heart start racing and stomach drop. Not being allowed to eat wasn’t difficult for you after all, since you were pretty sure you’d regurgitate anything you swallowed at the moment.

Another knock brought you back to reality and you responded with a groan. The visitor took that as a cue to open the door and next thing you knew your father was standing over your bed and chuckling. “You must’ve been in a pretty deep sleep if none of FRIDAY’s wake-up calls worked this morning.”

You threw the covers over your head in protest of what you knew was to come, and he sighed. “You have a date with the dentist in an hour and a half, kid.”

You didn’t say anything and Tony didn’t push any further, simply instructing FRIDAY to make sure you were ready on time and patting you through the blankets before leaving your room and closing the door behind him.

You stayed in your bed for a few minutes, trying to calm your nerves. You knew there was no way you were falling back asleep like this (especially since FRIDAY would alert your father if you did) so you went to go take a shower and prepare for your impending doom.

Even after you were all ready for the day, you didn’t leave your quarters. An irrational but desperate portion of your brain was holding out hope that if you stayed in your room long enough, everyone would just forget about you and the appointment, but to your dismay you heard a soft knock on your door shorty before 8:30 and sighed.

The door opened, but you didn’t move. “You gonna come with me, or do I need to call for backup?” Your dad joked softly. You knew he meat business, though, so you slowly stood up and walked toward the door. He wrapped an arm around you as you headed to the living room.

Most of the other Avengers were mulling around. They averted your gaze, but you could tell they were watching you whenever they thought you weren’t looking. Pity? Amusement? You couldn’t tell, and didn’t really want to focus on that. You were still pathetically trying to think of a last-ditch way to get out of doing this.

After an awkward moment of everyone kind of standing around, not sure what to do, Peter came running into the room. “Hey Mr. Stark I found that camera you were looking for. I still think the one on the phone is better but it’d be cool to have both in case you want to get different angles for Y/N’s post-op vid-” He stopped mid-sentence once he’d looked up and saw you storming out of the room and to the kitchen.

You were expecting someone to follow you, but didn’t hear any footsteps. You faintly heard Steve telling everyone to let you go before stepping into the kitchen and seeing Bucky at the counter. You sighed, realizing you weren’t going to be able to get away with breaking your fast, and you were really going to have the face the oral surgeon.

“Don’t worry,” Bucky said with a small smile. “The kid isn’t going with ya today. And I’m pretty sure your old man isn’t going to be getting to any funny business with that camera.”

You looked to see if anyone had followed you before looking back at him inquisitively. “We had a meeting this morning, while you were still sleeping. Talked mission assignments. And guess which one the leader of the Avengers is heading out on?”

It took you a second to process. “So Steve is coming to the dentist?”

“Yeah. I may have gotten in his ear about Stark’s....antics.”

Bucky smiled again, but you had mixed feelings on the matter. When you’d first arrived at the tower, Steve had taken you under his wing immediately. He knew what it was like to lose his mother as a teenager and he remembered how nice it was to have Bucky around during that time. But then you and Tony had found out he’d been withholding the truth about your grandparents’ death, and even though you’d technically “made up” you were still hesitant to fully trust him again.

But you knew Bucky was probably right to hint to him that he should be the one go with you and your dad today. You knew he wouldn’t make fun of you like most of the others, or allow Tony to pull anything. Of course, you were aware this also meant he wouldn’t let you try anything to weasel out of the procedure, so this was just more confirmation there was no backing out and you would indeed be getting it done. Today. The thought nearly made you visibly shiver.

Bucky took a few steps over to you, taking both your hands and simply saying, “I know”. He pulled you in for a hug and rubbed your back. “You gotta be good for Stevie today, alright? Because you know your dad won’t be.”

You laughed and Bucky gave your hands one last squeeze before you both heard footsteps approaching the kitchen. Bucky headed out to the living room, while you opened the fridge and pretended to have been pondering over the contents for the last few minutes.

“Y/N,” Steve’s voice made you jump slightly, even though you knew someone was coming. “You know you’re not supposed to eat anything this morning.” His tone was fairly stern but with a touch of concern.

“I wasn’t going to,” you replied, sounding like you had something to hide, but not what he thought you did. “And FRIDAY would have alerted Dad if I had. I was just...thinking.”

Steve’s eyes filled with compassion, seemingly believing you. “Well, speaking of your dad, he’s in the car ready to get going. I know I have a habit of being late, but I don’t think that’ll go over well at the surgeon’s office.”

“I guess not.” You remained in place, staring into the still-open refrigerator.

“We really do need to go now, Y/N.” You looked at him and while he was still showing sympathy, it was clear he meant business, and you didn’t feel like being thrown over a super-soldier’s shoulder kicking and screaming. He offered you a hand but you stepped right past him and began reluctantly walking out through the compound. Steve followed but Bucky - who had listened to your exchange - stopped him before he exited the building.

“Just remember, sometimes waking up is the hardest part,” he almost-whispered. You overheard, knowing this was Bucky looking out for you after you’d confided in him last night. Steve paused for a moment and you knew he was thinking of coming to after getting thawed from the ice, but he soon continued on and the two of you got in the car.

***

During the car ride Steve attempted to help you relax. “I know we all sound like a broken record, but you really don’t have to worry about this, Y/N. You’ll be out like a light the whole time.”

“Yeah, and probably even for a couple hours afterward,” you dad laughed, but of course you didn’t find that reassuring in the slightest. “Don’t worry,” he continued after seeing your face in the rearview mirror. “I’ve got that camera Peter found so we can catch you up on what you missed later on.”

“Tony.” Steve’s voice carried a clear warning.

“What? I’m just trying to make the surgical experience more fun for my kid. Sheesh.”

After he pulled into the parking lot of the oral surgeon's office, both of your chaperones got out of the car and you followed without putting up a fight, but only because it was the middle of summer in upstate New York and you’d probably get heatstroke if you didn’t get into an air-conditioned facility.

Tony entered the office first, with Steve insisting on walking behind you (most likely so that you couldn’t make a break for it). Your dad immediately approached the front desk and began talking with the receptionist, while you and Steve sat in the waiting room chairs. You looked at the floor, not wanting to take in the room and feel the reality of the situation just yet.

Since you’d moved in, the first Avenger had always felt protective over you - sometimes even more than Tony. The two of you formed a sibling-like bond very quickly, and he was the one you’d always been closest to (at least before the Accords drama and revelation about the Starks’ death happened).

“It’s going to be okay, Y/N.” He was using his softest, kindest voice, which you actually found a little bit reassuring. You allowed him to rub your leg but didn’t really respond to it, your body being accustomed to holding back from him nowadays.

But just then, the oral surgeon entered the room and began conversing with your father. You’d been fairly calm up until this point, but at that moment this whole thing felt so much more real, and your anxiety level increased big-time. You began to shake and your breathing became more frantic and shallow. Steve wrapped the arm he’d been rubbing your thigh with around your shoulder.

Soon it got even more intense for you. After a few brief moments both Tony and the doctor turned around. “Y/N?” the latter said.

Suddenly, all thoughts of keeping Steve at arm’s length (both figuratively and literally) went right out the window. You leaned right into him, giving him an awkward hug of sorts, grabbing his free hand with one of your own, and resting your head on his shoulder in some sort of pathetic, child-like attempt to hide from the inevitable as the surgeon approached you and smiled.

“Your dad was just going to show me a prototype he was working on for some new projects were might get some use out of around here.” You’d laugh at that if you weren’t so terrified. Of course Tony had booked an extra-long appointment so he could have ample to show-off his new toys, although what he could make that a dentist’s office could make use of, you couldn’t guess. “Why don’t you and your friend go relax in the back for now?”

The two of them headed outside and after some directions from the receptionist Steve gently tugged a reluctant you down the hall and into one of the work rooms. The room was about as upbeat and cheery as a surgical setting could be, with some nice art on the walls and lighting that was just bright enough to keep the room well-lit but not in a harsh way. But, of course, there were plenty of dental tools and, right in the middle, the dreaded dentist’s chair. To think that a similar room and seat had seemed so friendly less than 24 hours before...

You’d stopped in the doorway, lost in your train of thought, but a nurse came up from behind and bumped into you, knocking you down and breaking you out of your daze.

“Owww,” you moaned upon realizing you’d hit your left knee in a pretty bad spot. You tried to get up, but couldn’t manage to do so. Steve helped you sort of stand up and guided you over to sit down in the chair.

“Sorry about that,” The nurse said apologetically and rushed out of the room.

“Well, I’m no medic, but you should probably keep that leg elevated." Steve pulled a stool from the corner of the room over and rolled it beside the chair, taking a seat and placing you affected leg on his lap. The nurse came running back in with an ice pack. “Didn’t think we’d be needing this til after the procedure, but..” That managed to crack a small smile out of you, and the nurse left the two of you alone yet again.

“Well, that’s one way to get you in the chair,” Steve quietly joked. Your face fell and heartrate increased yet again. He began rubbing your back (or at least the parts of it he could reach with the current seating arrangement) and wiping the tears streaming down your face that you hadn’t even noticed until now.

“Come on, Y/N. Deep breaths.” The two of you would often try to ground each other after missions or generally upsetting experiences, but you weren’t having it today. You’d let out a couple of sobs and your breathing was pretty much all over the map at this point. “Y/N,” he repeated and you looked at him from the corner of your eye. “Ten in and out. Eyes closed. Captain’s orders.”

You rolled your eyes but half-smiled at that last bit and began to do your best to comply, even though you thought it was pointless since the second the doctor and your dad got back your anxiety levels would immediately shoot back up.

“One,” he counted quietly, squeezing your hand gently. You refused to close your eyes, but did take a big breath in.

“Two.” You had to admit, despite the slight tension you felt around Steve nowadays it was nice having him there.

“Three.” He provided a calming, stoic presence like no one else, and that was more helpful to have in here right now than, say, your father, who you loved more than anything but had a lot in common with temperament-wise, which wasn’t always a good thing.

“Four.” Yeah, Steve knew just the right thing to do in nearly every situation. This breathing exercise really was working shockingly well for you. Now you weren’t even thinking about...wait, what was it that had you all worked up, anyway?

“Five.” Your eyelids started to feel heavy. Maybe if you stopped trying to keep them open you could focus on thinking more clearly.

“Six.” Someone suddenly grabbed your right finger. Wait, but Steve was the only one in the room, and he was still holding your hand on your left, wasn’t he?

“Seven.” Oh right, he was Captain America. He could totally be in two places at once. You felt foolish for seemingly forgetting but the shame slid right off you.

“Eight.” You heard some quiet, steady beeping. Iron Man must have arrived! And the beeping was coming from his suit, of course. It was the only logical explanation.

“Nine.” Oh wait, maybe it was War Machine. Or Falcon, part of his suit was made of metal...

You never did hear the count for that last breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is getting a little longer than originally intended, but I think the next chapter will be the last.
> 
> Please keep it up with the responses! :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The moment of truth: what happens when the reader wakes up after the procedure?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo there's actually going to be one more chapter after this since it was getting too long. And I really struggled with this part.

You began to feel yourself waking up but still felt exhausted for some reason. Your eyelids were still heavy, but you slowly looked around the room, trying to figure out your surroundings. You could hear the familiar arguing voices of Steve and Tony - not every word, but you could vaguely make out the former telling the latter to “turn it off” - as well as a faint beeping sound. The faces of the two men you were hearing came into view, but your hazy mind was hoping to see someone else, so you began to sit up in hopes of spotting them.

You had barely moved an inch before you felt a strong hand grab your shoulder and gently ease you back down as you heard a quiet laugh coming from the same general direction. In your groggy state, you somehow hadn’t noticed Steve had rushed over to you when he noticed you had awoken. “Easy there,” he said with a smile you could see now that your eyelids were slightly less heavy. “No rush.”

Tony stepped over towards you, video camera out and recording (much to your chagrin, if you’d been awake enough to notice it). “Doc said you did really well today; they managed to yank all four of them out no problem.”

“But it’s all over now,” Steve quickly added, trying to avoid potential anxiety from you at the thought of “yanking them out”. “We’re almost ready to head back home.”

You weren’t really registering any of this, still looking around the room for the person you wanted to see and wondering why he didn’t seem to be there. “Buhee?” you asked in a dazed voice, additionally marred by the fact your mouth was currently filled with gauze. You immediately noticed something foreign was in your mouth upon speaking, and promptly spit it out.

Steve called for someone to bring in some fresh gauze and grabbed a tissue to discard of the bloody mess. “That was just gauze, and we have some more, see?” he explained as the assistant placed a fresh wad into the back of your mouth. “You have to leave it there for a little while longer, alright?”

You nodded absentmindedly, the message not really sinking in since all your tired mind had the power to do in that moment was try to figure out why you were feeling like you had some unfinished business to deal with. Your dad chuckled from the other side of the room, still holding the camera.

“Would you put that thing away? I don’t think Y/N is going to want to make a spectacle out of this.”

“I told the team I’d bring some entertainment when we got back. I can’t let them down.”

“So you’re exploiting your own child’s misery as a form of cheap entertainment?”

"Look, if this is the best we can get, I’ll take it. Even though I was promised hilarious rants about unicorns.”

“Did you even listen to the doctor? Everyone reacts to the anesthesia differently.”

As they were arguing, the assistant started gently removing everything the surgeon had you hooked up to during the procedure. She placed a was of cotton where the IV had been and opened a drawer to grab a box of band-aids. “I’m just going to stick this on top to keep it stuck on, see?” She held up an Iron Man bandage and stuck it on top of the cotton. “Now you’ve got your dad to protect you.” She gave Tony - who was still recording the whole thing - a stern look with just a hint of humor as she headed out of the room, as you looked back and forth between the bandage and Tony with wide eyes, mind seemingly blown at the information you’d just been told about your parentage.

Neither of the others could hold back their laughter this time. “Looks like they knocked you out pretty good,” Tony said before threw the supersoldier a smug glance now that even he couldn’t resist the hilarity.

“You think you can walk?” Steve asked. You definitely still weren’t “all there” but you somehow managed to nod while still gazing in awe at the band-aid, and the two of them slowly helped you out of the chair. As you turned around to leave the room, you were faced with a table of sharp, torturous-looking tools, a machine generating sounds that made you uneasy, and a certain kind of chair that had been featured in many horrible stories you’d heard. You froze on the spot, starting to get upset again, as your mind snapped back to where it had been few minutes prior. “Buhee?”

“Your arm isn’t bloody. It was only a little drop, and that’s gone now,” Steve said with a smile.

You shook your head. “Buhee,” you repeated.

“There’s no more blood, Y/N,” Tony reiterated what your other companion had just explained. “Well, except in your mouth, but the gauze-”

“No, noh _Blu_ hee, _Bu_ hee.”

“Y/N...” Steve was starting to figure out what you meant. “Are you saying...Bucky?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Rogers. Y/N doesn’t even talk to Barnes. Right Y/N?”

But you were nodding in confirmation, tears still in your eyes. “Yeth! Buhee!”

Steve was in such a shock that he couldn’t even send Tony a gloating look to get him back. Like your father, you’d been reluctant to be around him when he’d initially moved in with the Avengers, and while you didn’t exactly appear to be fearful anymore, you still tended to avoid the ex-assassin whenever possible. “What about Bucky, Y/N?” he asked gently once he’d managed to collect himself enough to respond.

“Hydwa...” you whispered, breathing now shaky.

The sharp tools. The loud machine. The moving chair. They were all from the stories Bucky had told you about his time with the corrupt organization. You’d heard so much about them you could picture the situation in your mind so clearly. And now you were here, with two superheroes, surrounded by all those things. And Bucky was nowhere to be found.

“Whereiz he?” You were now filled with both anxiety and determination, the way it often got while you were pressed for time on a mission. Only with the anesthesia mixed in it you were way more emotional than you usually would have been in this type of situation, wavering between threatening to dissolve into sobs or screaming your head off until you found your friend.

“Bucky’s fine, Y/N,” Steve smiled. While he’d quickly figured out you still weren’t totally with it and knew wouldn’t be saying these things if you were, he couldn’t help but love the fact that you were finally showing something other than contempt for his best friend. “He’s at the compound. Safe and sound. We’re just about to head back there now.”

But this didn’t make sense to you. In your tripped-out mind, the only possible explanations for the empty chair were that Bucky must have either been refrozen or sent out on a murderous mission by HYDRA. Either way, the three of you needed to save him.

“We cahnt go home,” you didn’t understand how both of them - especially Steve - were just standing there instead of springing into action. “Buhee’s mithing!”

“No, he’s not, Y/N,” Tony tried to be softspoken but couldn’t help let his annoyance and lack of remaining patience after the camera broke. “You just had your wisdom teeth out and need time to recover. So let’s go home and rest. You’re not even friends with Barnes, anyway.”

That last sentence really set you off. “NO, THATH NOT TRUE! WE AHW FWIENDS! WE HAVE TO THAVE HIM! Heeth...” you dissolved into tears again, prompting Steve to hold you back from your father and pull you in for yet another hug.

“Heeth my fwiend,” you mumbled quietly, as the tears rushed down your face.

“I know.” (Well, he didn’t, really, but he did want to help your ride out the after-effects of the anesthesia.) “Come on,” he said as he parted from the hug, ready to guide you out to the car.

“No.” You shook your head, adamant in your mission and wondering why the others didn’t seem as concerned. “Gotta thave him.”

You turned to run through the door on the other side of the room that led to a storage area, but couldn’t manage to properly turn the knob in your loopy state and ended up crashing into the door instead. Tony and Steve looked at each other, and the next thing you knew you were being carried out to the car by the supersoldier while your father trailed behind, trying to salvage the now-broken camera.

-

“I thought I was going to get a viral video out of today. Instead I have a broken camera and a kid crying over a man who killed multiple family members.”

Tony was grumbling as he drove the three of you back home. You’d spent the first half of the ride home insisting you turn around and go back to save Bucky from whatever you thought HYDRA was doing to him. But, seeing as you were exhausted from the surgery and still under the effects of the drugs, your protesting quickly took a toll on you both physically and emotionally, and soon they’d turned into incoherent sobs as you clung onto Steve and cried about not being able to rescue your friend.

“You could be a little more sensitive. You’re the one who insisted the appointment be today. And you know very well by now it wasn’t Bucky who did that.” Steve wasn’t exactly having the most fun day either. It was hard for him to see you so scared before your procedure and now so distraught afterward, and he didn’t have the patience to re-hash an old argument with Tony.

Of course your father was aware of who was really behind the attack, but it was still tough for him to see the “face” of the crime constantly around the compound. He was normally able to be fairly civil about it but today his supply of patience was solely reserved for you and he was definitely not prepared to be reminded of all of the other bad stuff in his life.

In the back of the car, Steve was trying to count his blessings. He hated seeing you in such a state but at least now that you had tired yourself out to an extent it was easier for him to help hold the ice packs on your cheeks, something you were neglecting to do in your heightened emotional state. “That’s it, Y/N,” he said as you continued to loopily cry. “Just keep them right there. You’re the one who was so scared of having chipmunk cheeks.”

Before you knew it, the three of you had arrived back home and you were still sobbing incoherently over Bucky. Steve would have found it adorable if it didn’t pain him so much to see you in this kind of anguish. You nearly tripped while getting out of the car, so you leaned on him for support on the way inside.

Tony had quickly climbed out of the car, knowing everyone would be waiting for you inside. He was determined to get them out of their before they saw you crying over the ex-assassin. Of course, the entire team - including Natasha and Rhodey, who had just returned from their mission - was gathered in the living room, and naturally, as soon as he walked into the room he was bombarded with inquiries on the procedure and the patient.

He had tried to move quietly in hopes he’d be able to get you settled in your room undetected, but, of course, as you stepped into the living room you were greeted by the entire team who were all highly anticipating your return. And naturally, as soon as they saw you were back they got up and started heading towards you, and practically everyone started speaking at once.

“So, how high is Y/N?”

“Did they let you guys keep the teeth?”

“I bet Y/N looks like a zombie!”

“Any chipmunk cheeks?”

“Did you get the video? I’m dying to see it!”

“Wait, wisdom teeth? You’d better hope anesthetic reaction isn’t genetic, Tones”

Tony held up his hands, trying to keep everyone under control (especially after that last comment) but it wasn’t until he gave a big whistle that the heroes calmed down a degree or two. He opened his mouth to speak, but was stopped by the sound of the door opening and the sound of two sets of footsteps approaching.

Soon you slowly entered the room, leaning on Steve for support. He tried to keep the others at a distance from you, but the whole scene was still a lot for someone still under the affects of anesthesia to take in. You slowly looked around at all of them, having trouble registering what each of them was saying. You began to feel uneasy and overwhelmed, but then your eyes landed on the other side of the room and suddenly you remembered why you’d been so upset for the past hour.

“Buhee?”

Before anyone could respond, you had lurched across the room. Steve tried to stop you out of fear you would fall, but his efforts proved to be futile and his fears true when you got dizzy again and your legs gave out, causing you to collapse on the ground right in front of Bucky.

He was slightly tentative about what to do, given your current state and the fact that none of the others knew of your close relationship, but after a second or two he awkwardly helped you up. As soon as you were somewhat stable on your feet, you immediately threw your arms around your secret friend, once again bursting into tears.

Bucky looked around the room, silently inquiring as to what was going on. All of the other heroes you’d come home to were dumbfounded too; they were aware you were normally tentative around Bucky and were probably acting differently now because of the anesthesia, but didn’t know whether to be amused or frightened. Like Tony, they had expected some crazy ranting to come out of your mouth, but this was something else entirely.

“I thogh they gough you,” you sobbed into his shoulder. “I saw the chaigh and brainwahhing mahine. I thogh you were wih Hydwa again.”

A couple of the other snickered, but most remained silent and confused as ever. Bucky still didn’t entirely understand what was going on, but he knew he didn’t like seeing his friend so distraught. If this had been after a nightmare, he’d take you in his arms and talk you down from it as best he could. Unfortunately, he wasn’t sure if you’d actually told anyone else about your relationship and didn’t want to be the one to out it, especially right now. It was a difficult dilemma: was he being a better friend by not blowing your secret, or would dropping the charade and fully reciprocating your affection be the best thing for you at the moment? Trying to find a compromise, he awkwardly patted your back a few times, still looking around trying to gauge how much information everybody knew.

After about a minute and a half of the collective loss of words from everyone in the room, Tony couldn’t take seeing you embracing Bucky anymore. “Come on, Y/N,” he said. “I think you should rest for awhile.”

At this suggestion, you shook your head and grabbed Bucky even tighter. Your dad kept trying to persuade you to let go and head to your bedroom, but you weren’t having any of it. As far as your hazy brain knew, you just got Bucky back and you weren’t about to let him out of your sight again anytime soon.

“How about resting on the couch? You could stay together that way.” Steve chimed in. “That is, if Bucky is willing t-”

“I’m willing.” Realizing he probably jumped in a little too quickly and eagerly, he continued more nonchalantly, nearly mumbling, “I mean, I don’t see why not.”

Everyone began helping to get you settled (or, more accurately for some, hanging around to see if there’d be any more midday entertainment) and Tony pulled Peter aside.

“Can you keep an eye on Y/N and the Terminator over there for awhile? Someone’s gotta make sure Y/N doesn’t go haywire after waking up and realizing who else is right there on the couch.” _Or make sure Y/N DOES go haywire._ He thought. _Not too much, though. Just enough to prove that the behavior displayed today really was nothing more than a product of dental drugs._

Peter headed over to help the others while Tony headed down the hallway and slumped into a chair. But unfortunately, he was incorrect in his assumption no one saw him exit the living room.

“You know, sometimes I think you’re starting to actually make a breakthrough. But then you go right back to being like this.”

Tony lifted his head and sighed upon realizing he wasn’t going to be able to get out of whatever this conversation was going to be. “Being like what, Rogers?”

“Well, for starters you exploited your own child for cheap entertainment this morning.”

“My own _half-asleep_ child,” Tony retorted, as if that somehow made it better. “Wait, that didn’t come out right-”

“And now you’ve tasked a teenager with taking care of Y/N while you mope over here.”

“This isn’t moping, this is collecting my thoughts. And-”

“Look, Tony. Either way, I really don’t think you’re being a very good father right now.”

Tony Stark could handle a lot of things, but having his parenting skills called into question was most certainly not one of them. He was sitting up completely now, opening his mouth to respond a few times but no words were coming out. Finally, they did. “You don’t know the first thing about being a parent.”

Now it was Steve’s turn to sigh. The man did have a point, but he was missing his. “That doesn’t change the fact that most of us are taking better care of Y/N than you are right now. Dental patients need relaxation and support, not grooming to be some sort of internet celebrity for their father’s amusement.”

“You think I’m enjoying this? You think I LIKED seeing Y/N shaking out of pure terror this morning? You think I find the tears AMUSING?” Tony stood up and took a few steps away from the supersoldier.

Steve simply stood in place, waiting for Tony to be ready to talk again. Just as he was about to attempt to continue the conversation. Tony broke the silence with a small chuckle. “You know, it’s funny. We send Y/N into training and missions all the time... but somehow today has been the scariest day I’ve ever experienced as a parent.” He laughed slightly while shaking his head. “I didn’t think anything bad would actually happen, but the whole ‘loss of control’ thing...”

“Well, I suppose that’s where Y/N gets it from.” Steve smiled, then finally started to understand your father’s earlier behavior. “So the camera helped you put on a brave face.”

“I was trying to see the funny side of it,” Tony sighed as his mind wandered back to your hysterics over Bucky. “But I guess karma had the last laugh today.”

“Well, she’s known for being tricky like that,” Steve commented on the irony of karma.

There was another relatively long pause before either man spoke again. “You know what the worst part was?” Tony broke the silence. “That Y/N didn’t want me there afterwards.”

“You know that’s not true.”

Tony sighed once again. “Knowing the truth is one thing. Sometimes getting yourself to believe it is another.”

Steve stepped over to place a comforting hand on his back. They both knew the Bucky stuff was more than likely just the anesthesia talking, but he knew reminding him of that, the ways he was there for you today, or the fact that you loved him wouldn’t really cheer the other man up. The only thing that would truly ease his mind would be seeing you back to your normal self when you woke up later on.

Needless to say, they were both really hoping those painkillers the surgeon prescribed wouldn’t keep you in your loopy state for days on end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and if you can please comment so I get an idea of what people are thinking about this story. :)


	4. Chapter 4

Things slowly morphed into a fairly typical afternoon. After you promptly fell asleep once you and Bucky had gotten settled on the reclining couch, the rest of the team quickly realized the show was over and Rhodey, disappointed at missing the initial excitement over the videos the day before, started telling everyone stories about Tony’s reaction after the procedure way back when. His impressions were entertaining enough to satisfy their craving for excitement for a bit, so they all headed back to their usual routines (except for Sam, who started working on his own second-hand impression to use against Tony later on).

Then it was just you, Bucky, and Peter left in the living room. Bucky, still desperate to keep your shared secret under wraps despite all that had recently transpired, kept sending Peter on various errands around the compound in hopes of keeping him occupied and out of the area when you woke up. Soon, Peter was so focused on being a gopher he forgot all about his _actual_ job of making sure nothing happened when you woke up.

Unfortunately, Peter was an _exceptionally_ good assistant and completed every task Bucky gave him in record time. Heated blanket? Yup. Frozen peas? No problem. Strawberry smoothie? Done. With banana? Added on the double.

Soon over two hours had passed and Bucky felt you begin to stir. So he gave Peter on the most impossible-but-still- _plausible_ task he could think of on the spot.

“Y/N keeps groaning a lot. Probably needs some stronger pain medicine.” Bucky hoped Peter wouldn’t realize you had been prescribed some by the doctor and over-the-counter stuff wouldn’t be nearly as good.

“Groaning? While sleeping?”

“Uh, yeah…sleep-groaning.”

“Oh, that makes sense,” Peter said as if it should have been immediately obvious.

“Yeah. I think I saw a really good one in the lab. It’s...pink...with sparkles...in a glass bottle shaped like a...star.”

“Got it!” Peter started to run out of the room and down the hallway.

Bucky sighed in relief as he heard Peter race down the hallway, and gazed down at you as you continued to slowly stir. “That’ll keep him busy for awhile.” Though he quickly realized he may have sent Peter right to your dad, and prayed he wasn’t working in the lab at the moment.

You had immediately snuggled into Bucky once the two of you were seated on the couch, but in order to keep your head elevated he’d placed a pillow behind it which resulted in it being upright but leaning against his shoulder. As you were getting settled you’d been allowed to remove the cotton from your mouth, but Bucky did hold an ice pack he’d had Peter fetch against your cheeks as you slept to keep the swelling to a minimum, which he put down as he felt you waking up.

Even before you opened your eyes, you noticed the familiar warmth and smell you loved to your left. You tilted your head up towards Bucky and as you lifted your eyelids the first sight you saw was him smiling down at you affectionately.

You had a drowsy smile of your own plastered on your face, but it faded all too soon when something began to feel off. Cuddling with Bucky was something you experienced only while descending into slumber, not waking up from it. In addition to the confusion, there was also something nagging at the back of your mind; something you were worried about that you couldn’t quite put your finger on.

“Bucky?” you said. “What are you doing here? You’re always gone in the morning.”

“Then I guess it’s a good thing it’s not morning,” Bucky smiled, but you gave him a puzzled look in response. He chucked and elaborated “It’s nearly 3 in the afternoon, doll.”

You felt a small pang of panic in your chest. “But-but I just fell asleep next to you! We were talking about my wisdom teeth appointment and you being put under by HYDRA and then...well, I guess I drifted off.” You gasped when you realized what had been eating at you. “Wisdom teeth! How long before I have to go? You should really get out of here before-” You were abruptly rendered speechless suddenly noticed you weren’t in your bedroom, but the living room. 

“So you don’t remember anything after you fell asleep last night, huh?” Bucky’s voice was concerned but with a hint of humor as he thought of what had transpired when you’d arrived home.

“I-I guess not. But if it’s afternoon, why didn’t anyone wake me to go to-” You stopped mid-sentence again as your tongue brushed up against a foreign presence in your mouth, which you quickly managed to figure out. “Stitches…” you whispered, eyes wide. “So it already happened? It’s over?”

Bucky smiled again. “It’s over.”

“But-but...how? My mouth doesn’t even feel any different, besides the stitches. Are my cheeks swelling?” You sat up as your eyes searched the room for a mirror, but Bucky gently eased you back into your previous position and shook his head.

“All good. Took care of that while you were sleeping,” Bucky held up the ice pack.

“What about the medicine?”

“Right here. Which reminds me,” He reached over to the table beside the couch to retrieve a pill and a cup of juice. “I think it’s about time for you to take some.” You did so and Bucky smiled. “See? Everything is covered.”

“Oh...okay.” you were a little slow, still in disbelief it was actually over and done with. But then you spotted the video camera Tony had left on the table. “Wait…”  Suddenly it had hit you that you’d had surgery earlier that day and been given drugs which may have influenced your behaviour in ways you really did not want it to, and now you were on the couch with Bucky in the living room, with the possibility of anyone walking in at any moment. “What happened? Why am I on the couch with you while no one else is around? And why didn’t Steve make my dad put the video camera away?”

“Don’t worry about the camera. He didn’t get any good footage.” You let out a big breath, knowing that you probably hadn’t done anything weird after all. “He seemed pretty shaken up. I think you scared him pretty good, doll.” Bucky chuckled, but of course that little tidbit only served to spike your anxiety once again.

“What?” Now _you_ were scared, and on the verge of tears. Your biggest concern about this whole ordeal had been the aftermath, and it seemed like your fears about it had come true.

Bucky immediately noticed this and his demeanor quickly changed from amused to concerned. “Hey,” He pulled you closer to him, right arm resting on your shoulders. “It’s okay.” He gently rubbed your arm and couldn’t help but say his next words with a smile. “One of the good things about me being stuck here is not needing to worry about any more HYDRA experiments.”

“I’m glad that’s all over and you’re safe here,” you said, not sure why he’d brought that up now. “But I’m pretty sure Steve and Nat took care of that business awhile ago. Why would we be worried about HYDRA now?”

Once again, Bucky had to hold back a laugh. “You seemed pretty worried about it today.”

“What?”

Before Bucky could explain, you both suddenly heard footsteps approaching the living room. “Go back to sleep,” he whispered quickly. “Or just pretend like you are.”

You were confused, but certainly didn’t need to be asked twice. But just as your mind was shifting from wondering Bucky was saying about your anesthesia-induced behaviour to why you were even lying on the couch with him in the first place, another voice interrupted your thoughts.

“Sorry I took so long.” Peter was out of breath. “But I got the medicine. Well, I think so. It’s sparkly and in a star-shaped bottle but it’s more of a purpley-pink, not _pink_ pink. Unless that’s what you wanted.”

He handed it over to Bucky, who was feeling a mix of relief and confusion. He was thankful Tony hadn’t returned with Peter and that they seemingly hadn’t run into each other, but couldn’t believe he had found something even remotely close to what he had described. He examined it as he tried to think of another way to get Peter out of the living room. “That’s fine,” he managed to get out. “But I think Y/N could also use-”

“How’s the patient doing?”

Peter turned around and Bucky looked up to see Steve standing in the entrance to the room, neither having noticed any sign of him approaching.

“Pretty good, I think,” Peter said. “But I did have to go get some of Mr. Stark’s special pain medicine. I think I might have to go grab something else, too.”

He looked back at Bucky, who was closely watching his friend’s face, nervous as to what his reaction to the mention of the ‘special pain medicine’. Steve nodded as Peter spoke, before briefly looking behind him at you and Bucky on the couch, and the pink bottle Bucky was holding. “Peter, you’re off the clock.”

“But Mr. Stark said-”

“I’ll talk to Tony later.”

“You sure Y/N doesn’t need anything else?”

Steve looked over at you as you ‘slept’. “I think everything is gonna be fine. You’re free, Peter.”

He smiled as Peter left and then sat down on the couch next to you. “Long day, huh.”

“I guess.” Bucky was still a little wary about what Steve might say.

“Peter’s a good kid trying to help Y/N so much.”

“Yeah.”

Bucky was worried Steve might bring up the ‘medicine’ but instead he spent the next few minutes simply looking at you as you laid against him, his arm still around your shoulders. “Looking pretty comfortable there.”

Bucky glanced down at you. “That does tend to happen to people when they’re asleep.”

“I meant both of you.”

Bucky’s mind briefly froze. “Well, I don’t really think I have much of a choice at the moment.” He tried to laugh, but it came out pretty shakily. At the same time, your neck began to itch and you shifted as slightly as possible to relieve it without Steve catching you.

“True…” You mentally sighed in relief that he seemingly hadn’t seen you move. “If you decide you need a stretch, I’ll be in the training centre. Just have FRIDAY call for me.”

“Got it.” And with that, Steve left, leaving you alone with Bucky once again.

You never got to discuss what you’d said, though, because for the rest of the day, people were constantly venturing in and out of the living room, giving the two of you no time to talk any more. That didn’t bother you too much, though, because you soon fell asleep again, and, after he’d eaten the dinner Natasha had brought for him, so did Bucky.

As everyone was getting ready for bed, you woke up again and took another dose of medicine. You wanted to grab a snack, but as you heard voices approaching yet again, you maneuvered yourself back into sleeping position as quickly as you could. You were still too worn out to come up with a feasible explanation as to why you were awake and level-headed when you were alone in a room with the guy you were supposed to be afraid of.

“So Barnes has the wild bouncing slime I made for Barton’s kids? How did he even get that if he’s been in here all afternoon?”

“You said the missing bottle had pink in it, right? I think that was the one Peter brought down for Y/N earlier.”

Tony and Steve entered the room and Tony immediately spotted the bottle on the table next to the couch. “What would someone who’s been sleeping all day do with slime?”

Steve picked it up and examined it. “I think Peter got it. He said it was some kind of special medicine.” He handed the bottle to a puzzled Tony.

“Peter got it? He was supposed to stay down here and watch the two of them before you told me you took over.”

“Well, I did see him running around the compound a few times this afternoon.”

Tony was still wrapped up in his own thoughts. "I don’t even know how these two ended up alone in here...or how Y/N hasn’t even woken up yet."

Both men looked down at you and Bucky lying on the couch together.

"You have to admit, Tony,” Steve said as he smiled upon the scene below him. “Today could have gone a lot worse.”

“I guess….Peter could have stolen one of the more explosive substances from the lab.” He fiddled with the bottle, relieved that the lid hadn’t been opened. “But seriously, imagine if Y/N actually tried to consume this.” He winced.

“Bucky would have made sure that didn’t happen.”

Tony sighed. “It’s still so weird to see...this.”

“Is it really a bad thing though?”

“Well….I guess I wouldn’t exactly...use the specific term...bad.” You couldn’t help but smile at that, not even realizing you were doing so.

Steve could see that Tony still didn’t look totally comfortable, so he put a hand on his shoulder. “I know today has been a lot to process. But I think we can leave them alone for the night, don’t you? I don’t think anything is going to happen until morning at least.”

“Y/N still hasn’t woken up yet,” Tony pointed out, and Steve had to hold back a knowing smile as his fellow Avenger looked back over at you. “It’s bound to happen anytime now.”

“I can stay down here until it does.” Steve knew nothing was going to happen, but he knew it would put Tony at ease. And there were a few things he was curious about as well.

“Great. Now I apparently I have to go give a chemistry lesson to our spider-friend.” Tony waved the bottle of slime around before disappearing down the hallway.

Steve turned back to the couch and smirked. “It’s nice to see you smiling, Y/N.”

You dropped your jaw in surprise, then immediately realized your mistake in this as well as smiling earlier. Unfortunately, it was already too late and Steve sat down on the couch next to you.

“It’s okay.” he chuckled as he gently squeezed your knee. “I just wanted to check in. I know you've had a bit of a rough day.”

You relented and opened your eyes. “I don’t even remember anything that _happened_ today.”

“Well, you did sleep through most of it.” Steve smiled.

“I know my teeth are out. I can feel the stitches and did take a bit of the medicine - the _actual_ medicine - but I can’t remember what happened between that and when I went to sleep last night.” You deliberately left out the fact that you hadn’t gone to sleep until about 2 am, with Bucky in the bed with you.

 _Bucky_ . The other thing you remembered was your little chat with him when you’d first woken up on the couch that afternoon. If you were being completely honest, _finally_ getting to wake up in his arms after him leaving early every morning while you were still asleep was the one redeeming part of the recovery process. It was everything you’d dreamed it to be. In fact, you might even go so far as to say it made the whole surgery thing worth it, but you still didn’t yet know if your worst fears had come true so you couldn’t be certain about that.

“Your dad and I took you to the office this morning. You were only out for an hour, if that.”

“I guess I made up for that for the rest of the day.”

“Well, you were pretty nervous in there. They probably used some of the stronger stuff on ya. But it all went well. You’re gonna be on strict resting orders for about a week, though.”

“A whole week?”

Steve nodded sympathetically. “I know how much you hate being out of commission, but we’ll manage to keep things afloat in the meantime. Right now we’re all just glad you’re okay. And I’m sure you’re glad Bucky is okay.” He gave you a look that seemed like it was meant to indicate some sort of inside joke, but if it was it was one you weren’t in on.

 _Did he know what was going on between the two of you?_ “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” That sentence fell somewhere between the ‘playing dumb’ and ‘genuinely being lost on things’ categories.

“Well, you were pretty out of it today.” Steve smiled as your fear about the anesthesia’s effects suddenly came rushing back.

“What happened?”

“Well, the good news is you didn’t punch anyone like in that video we were watching yesterday.” You could tell Steve found this particular concern especially funny, but you appreciated his attempt to minimize his reaction.

“That’s a relief. But what _did_ I do?”

Steve didn’t say anything, carefully thinking about how to describe the scene that had played out earlier that day, but you were running out of patience.

“What did I do?” Your voice was raised a fair amount from before, and was filled with panic.

“When you woke up you…thought you were somewhere else.”

“What?”

“When you saw the chair and the tools you seemed to think you were being tortured.”

“Good to know I wasn’t wrong, even in my altered mental state.”

Steve smiled briefly, then continued. “Well, you actually thought it was Bucky being tortured.”

“But Bucky wasn’t there.”

“I know. You saw the room and...thought we were on a rescue mission. At a HYDRA base.”

Your eyes widened as you remembered what Bucky had started telling you that afternoon. “OHHH...oh…then what happened?”

“Well, we brought you back home so you’d see everything was fine. And you were pretty happy about it when you did. You were all over him.”

“Oh,” You tried your best to sound neutral, but groaned internally. You were glad you didn’t hurt anyone, but this was almost as bad. “C-can you elaborate?”

“You nearly toppled him over, and wouldn’t let go until we got you settled on the couch. But from the looks of it, you didn’t even release him then.”

“So I just...hugged him? And, like, clung to him?”

“Yeah. He didn’t seem to mind, though. Well, clearly, since he’s stayed on the couch with you all day.”

“So that’s it? Did anything else happen? Did I say anything weird?”

“Other than actually acknowledging his existence for once? No, you’re good there. No unicorn or fairy-tale talk.”

“And I didn’t... _do_ anything else? Like I didn’t kiss him or anything, right?”

Steve laughed out loud at that. “No. Those drugs didn’t take you _that_ far from yourself.”

You let out a sigh. Mostly of relief, but with a touch of longing from thinking about the idea of kissing Bucky. You were certainly glad you hadn’t done so earlier, and if Steve seemed to see your drug-induced behaviour as out-of-character, the others surely did too. But now your mind was stuck on how much you _wanted_ it to happen, just under different circumstances. Maybe if you’d had more ‘alone time’ after waking up in the afternoon…"

“Y/N,” Steve began, snapping you out of your thoughts. “Did you... _want_ to kiss Bucky?”

You far-too-oft forgot about how you wore your heart on your sleeve (it truly was a miracle you’d managed to keep your ‘Bucky nights’ under wraps for this long) and Steve could read you better than almost anyone. You pondered what to say next, opening your mouth to speak a few times before closing it, but were never able to answer as he took your lack-of-a-response as a sufficient one.

“Because from the sound of your conversation today, I don’t think he’d mind if you did.”

You still couldn’t form a coherent response. “Y-you...you were…?”

“I was kinda hovering around, yeah. Just wanted to make sure you were okay, with Peter being in-and-out and all.”

“Peter?” You vaguely remembered him running in the room with some sort of bottle, but were pretty fuzzy on the details.

“Yeah, your dad wanted him to keep tabs on you in case you had an ‘adverse reaction’ to waking up with Buck. But somehow I don’t think you would have.”

“I mean... _probably_ not.” Neither of you could help but laugh at that.

“How long?” You knew he was asking about you and Bucky being on speaking terms. (Or some sort of _other_ ones.)

“Awhile,” you admitted. “We see each other at night. No kissing though.” Steve laughed. “Or anything else,” you quickly added.

“Probably a good thing. I think someone else might have had an adverse reaction if he'd seen any of that.”

Uh-oh. “How’s Dad been handling it?” You couldn’t imagine very well.

Steve took a long breath. “Better than expected, actually.”

“Probably because he thinks this is all drug-induced.” The two of you laughed again.

“Well, it’s a good thing you’ve got a whole week to let him think that before you explain things.” You could hear the Captain America voice creeping it and knew what he wasn’t saying. _And yes, you ARE going to have to explain things._ You sighed. “You don’t have to tell him about the kissing yet.”

“The kissing that isn’t happening?”

“ _Yet._ ” You rolled your eyes, but smiled.

“Here,” Steve handed you your medicine - your _real_ medicine - “You should take some of this and get some sleep.”

“But I’ve been sleeping all day!”

“The more you rest, the faster your mouth will heal.”

“And the sooner I’ll have to talk to Dad.” But you still took the medicine and leaning over onto Steve, eyelids feeling heavy again. You were nearly asleep when you felt him start to get up from the couch, shifting you back over to rest on Bucky.

“Steve?” you mumbled.

“Yes?”

“I know we didn’t have to rescue Bucky from HYDRA today.” You opened your eyes. “But I’m glad you did back then.”

You’d never really talked about the whole Bucky situation with Steve. You and Tony had made it clear how you felt about him moving into the compound, and from then on there’d always been this tension hanging. In fact, he hadn’t realized until now that this was the most at ease the two of you had been with each other since before the Sokovia Accords drama. Today had been hard in a lot of ways, but it was such a relief for him to know you didn’t resent Bucky anymore...and didn’t resent him, either.

He smiled and squeezed your hand. “Me too.”

As he left the living room, you lifted Bucky’s arm and put it over your shoulders again, snuggling back into him. But just as you were about to fall asleep…

“Steve’s right, you know.”

After a small jolt, you turned to look at Bucky. “I-I didn’t know you were awake.”

He snickered softly. “Kinda hard to sleep with all the yelling and laughing.”

“I’m sorry.” And you really were. Bucky had completely devoted his entire day - and now night - to your comfort and well-being. The least you could do was let him get some sleep.

“It’s okay. I’m actually glad I was awake for that conversation.”

Bucky smiled, but you groaned. “I can’t believe I spent all of last night worrying about punching people and didn’t even think about the possibility of the HYDRA freakout.”

He sighed. “That’s probably my fault. I’ve been reliving those memories whenever I have the nightmares, and I guess I ended up dumping it all on you.”

“Don’t you dare start down that path. I volunteered to listen. And how could you even have predicted I’d act like that today?"

“I could ask you the same question.”

You knew he was right, and you leaning back onto him, closing your eyes. “We really need to stop blaming ourselves for things out of our control.”

“That’s gonna be a tough habit to break.”

“Well, we can keep each other in check on that front.”

“Deal. But getting back to what I was sayin’ before, Steve was right.”

You weren’t quite following. The drugs were pretty much totally out of your system by this point, but the short-term memory was still pretty hazy. “What?”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

“Wouldn’t mind wha...oh.”

You opened your eyes as the realization dawned upon you. Steve had said Bucky wouldn’t mind if you kissed him. And now Bucky himself was confirming it on his own accord, which meant he not only didn’t mind, he most likely _wanted_ you to kiss him. This wasn’t the scenario you had pictured for the big moment, but after flashing back to the idea of it happening while you were still “under the influence” made this moment seem like the most romantic scene ever in comparison.

You turned to face him and saw his eyes were now shut, so you tentatively placed your hands on his shoulders in an attempt to communicate your intentions. Bucky kept his eyes closed, but gave you a small smile, and that was all you needed to be assured he was indeed on board with this.

You slowly pressed your lips to that smile, and when you felt him reciprocate you felt relaxed enough to close your own eyes and let go to enjoy it. You both wished it could be deeper and last longer, but the oral surgery prevented it from going much further. But that didn’t matter to you. This kiss was one of relief and comfort and love, and those things were what you needed more than anything else at the moment. You knew there would be _plenty_ of time for steam and passion down the line.

Bucky pulled you down onto him, breaking the kiss but allowing his lips to trail up your face, stopping on your nose, between your eyebrows, and finally on your forehead, before laying your head on his shoulder and putting his arms around you. His hands rested on your lower back as he kissed your head before shifting into a more comfortable position for sleeping. You wrapped your own arms around him and settled in, but before you could fall back asleep Bucky spoke one more time.

“Trying to make sure I can’t leave tomorrow morning?"

You laughed. “You caught me. Waking up in your arms has been the best part about today. It actually almost made it all worth it."

“Almost?”

“Well, keep in mind I _did_ embarrass myself in front of everyone, and Steve _is_ making me come clean to Dad about us.”

“Not about the kissing yet,” Bucky reminded you of what Steve said.

“Oh yeah…maybe it _was_ worth it then...” you yawned and smiled as you drifted off to sleep, ready to try to get back to normal as quickly as possible.

Though the prospect of mornings of waking up in Bucky’s arms without having to explain yourself to anyone just might make you yearn for a more prolonged recovery process...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally done! Hooray!
> 
> Thank you for all the great comments and support! It was very motivating, even though it took forever for me to finish chapters.
> 
> Like I said when I started this story, this was actually mainly a writing exercise for me to work on character dynamics for another, longer fic. I posted the first chapter of that story, "Perceptions", about a week ago, so if you liked the interactions in this story you might end up enjoying that one (and I do plan on updating that project more frequently/regularly).


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